a Librarian
a Librarian
Get Librarian Help
Tips and Tricks for Finding Book Reviews
Reviews are usually published within five years of a book's publication. If you need a review of a book published in 1960, chances are good that you will not find a review in a database with coverage beginning in 1980.
Try searching for the author's last name and the title of the book - author's first names are often not indexed.
When was the book published? Most online book review resources only cover the last decades of the 20th century to the present. Reviews of older materials will often be in print publications.
Do you need a review of a popular novel? Use a source that covers popular materials rather than scholarly journals.
Resources for Reviews of Popular Fiction and Non-Fiction
- Academic Search Premier (1975-present)Finds books reviews in many disciplines published in core journals and trade publications. Bonus: almost all reviews are available online. To search for book reviews only, scroll down to "search options" and click on "book reviews" under "document type."
- Access World NewsAccess World News from NewsBank provides full-text information and perspectives from over 600 U.S. and over 500 international sources, each with its own distinctive focus offering diverse viewpoints on local, regional and world issues.
- Book Review Digest Plus (1983-present)Reviews of children's, young adult, and adult fiction and non-fiction from 1983-present. The full text of most reviews are available online.
- Book Review Index Plus (1965-present)Reviews of both scholarly and popular materials from 1965-present. Includes some full text and links to full text as well as citations for works available only in print.
- LexisNexis Academic (1985-present)Finds book reviews in a variety of newspapers and popular magazines. To find reviews, "search the news" using the title of the book and the word "review" (example: "harry potter and the death hallows review").
- New York Times Book Review (1997-present)Reviews of fiction and non-fiction. To limit a search to book review, click on "more search options," scroll down to "document type" and then "reviews," and click on "book reviews."
Resources for Reviews of Scholarly Books
- JSTORIncludes core journals from the humanities, arts, social sciences, and sciences. Usually does not include the most recent 3-5 years. To find book reviews only, click on advanced search and narrow by "Review."
- Project MuseFull text access to reviews from over 400 core journals, including the most recent issues. To find reviews only, click on "advanced search" and then "type of content: reviews only."
- Current Contents ConnectContains citations to and some full text of reviews of scholarly articles and books in the sciences and social sciences. Coverage is limited in the arts and humanities.
- CHOICE: Current Reviews for Academic Libraries (2009-present)
Resources for Reviews in Historical Newspapers
- New York Times Historical (1851-2001)Full text access to every issue of the New York Times published between 1851 and 2001.
- Times (London) Digital Archive (1785-1985)Full text access to the Times of London from 1785 to 1985.
- Early American NewspapersFull text access to access to a variety of newspapers published in America between 1690 and 1876. Search tip: put the title of a book in quotation marks and add the word "review."
- British Newspapers, 1600-1900Full text access to a variety of British newspapers published between 1600 and 1900. Search tip: put the title of a book in quotation marks and add the word "review."
Loading...
